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Only back in June 2018 I finally caught up and reviewed the Boeing 787-900 by Magknight. I had flew the aircraft earlier and basically kept an eye on the progress, but as the aircraft went from a development stage and into a sale payware aircraft it then came up on to my radar. Overall the review was very good for an aircraft that is basically built up in PlaneMaker and not as a custom plugin design. This is a tribute to the developer Magknight to get such a quality aircraft out of which is the only the default system of X-Plane.

There was some inadequacies, but the aircraft is a project in progress and you sign up for that from the start, overall it is at this stage getting really good and here is the next version v1.05 step with more areas now adjusted and more points that have been developed forward.

Externally the aircraft has been revised with a new normal map and the new quality shows, the distinctive nose has also been remodeled to form a better shape. It certainly looks better, but the older map outline on the radar dome is still the same so it looks still like it is penciled in and not defined.

A new livery is provided for Qantas with VH-ZNA, and a very nice livery it is, but it also shows up a new issue...

... the tail texture quality is not as bright or as clean as the fuselage and is more contrasty, it is not as noticeable on white tails, but certainly on the coloured tails, that was not there on the previous version (I checked), I think it is to be aware of a work in progress, but it should have been an item that should have been covered before release. There has been a lot of work done on the marching ants issue, that was particularly bad on the moving parts of the engines. This area is now far better, but not perfect... as the ants are still there but now central fuselage and not the same issue as before?

The ants are now only noticeable from certain angles (arrowed) and you have to really go looking for them, but they are still there. It doesn't takeaway the detail and quality design of these new-gen engines of which are the best currently reproduced here.

Most of the focus here in v1.05 is on the OverHead Panel (OHP) switchgear. Areas are now 3D button operational including Battery, Lights and you now have overhead failure annunciators covering APU Bleed FAULT, Engine Driven Primary Pump L FAULT, Engine Driven Primary Pump R FAULT, Hydraulic Electric Pumps L, C1, C2 & R and all now show electric pump FAULT (Failure). Switchgear can be still slightly clunky, but I had issues starting the engines, as the No.2 engine switch flickers and the engine wouldn't start? (annoying) and you have the strange feel of the mouse scroll being on the half moon manipulators and than set on the full moon manipulators, as it is still slightly clunky to use... but you do get used to it.

My current irritation is that a lot of developers go ahead and keep putting in newer and newer features but over look the basics. Here it is the engine start, bleed and fuel introduction... Most functions here on the OHP are also still blocked off like with the EXT (External) power, but overall it a nice step forward in functionality.

Clock (below) now works as well with cycles between START, STOP, RESET and the glareshield has more functionality...

Flap positions and detents have been updated to the -9 Series variant and look great... but in performance you have a slight engine surging at top mach or in this case m.84, but X-Plane11 is mostly the cause of that and it is up to the developer to fine-tune it out... ditto the performance model in fuel usage to thrust power required, which feels a little better, but with the surging throttle it then also cancels out any clear readings. For a long haul airliner of this caliber then this area of performance is crucial. More new pedestal detail includes; Fuel control levers (Engine fire lights corrected), Extinguisher levers (Now show engine fire annunciator) and bottle discharge annunciators.

I wasn't very happy with the v1.04 dull panel (display) brightness...

... cockpit lighting adjustment is now more adjustable and the main displays feel and look far more brighter, a bit more brightness would still be nice, but it is far better flying the aircraft now at night. There is however still too much cockpit overhead lighting for dark instrument approaches and the "Storm" lighting button is blanked off, in it being also switched "on"?

Those impossibly beautiful wings are really well done here, and they have had some attention a well with better wingflex and dynamics, and they certainly look and react far better.

The aircraft's external lighting has had a lot of attention... the lighting actually was not that bad, but has now been refined more.

Taxi light is now in the correct position, All three landing lights work individually in left, right and center, you can if you have set the X-Plane key landing light in that all three will switch on or off with one switch. Both runway turnoff lights work, as does the wing and those double tail strobe lights. Navigation lights are still the same, but they were fine originally. I only found the light throw was not very long for the landing lights and you can't see anything the runway turnoff lights do from the cockpit (they are supposed to light the taxiway exits?), however the wing lights are very good.

Summary

So let us get to the short and chase of this upgrade. Yes I really love this aircraft, and it is coming along very nicely and it looks really great in X-Plane. Yes it is an ongoing project, and yes the updates will continue to come in creating an excellent Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.

The v1.05 update covers a lot of areas including more functionality, in switchgear and actions and noted failures, new mapping and a higher quality external aircraft. Lighting and wingflex has also had attention and so has the ant marching distractions.

But, here there is a few backward movements as well with the tail now not matching the fuselage in colour and contrast? And there is still some ant marching from the internal area of the aircraft (this reflects on to the engines?)....

But, and this is the main point in that for all the wonderful changes a few of the very X-Plane basics still don't work? There is first with battery off (or cold) still full power to all the displays and avionics? "External" power connection (is on all the time) and this is just a simple switch. Engines don't start correctly (flickering Eng No.2 switch with the wrong manipulator?) and they don't switch back to the stop position once used, engine fuel switching on start up doesn't work, bleed on engine startup doesn't work (yes it is automatic, but you should still be able to switch the bleed and start the fuel flow, ... I found the aircraft to be buggy if you reload while in X-Plane (from the menu) as the ILS Align and APP does not then work correctly... and so for the next version the fundamental basics required for flying the aircraft should really be the priority before anymore new features... and yes I love it and otherwise it is a really great aircraft with a load of protential.